Claudinho had almost played in the shirt of Ajax this season. The 24-year-old midfielder of Zenit Saint Petersburg said he was ‘very close’ to an agreement with the Amsterdam team last summer, who, however, contacted him outside the transfer period. Ajax wanted Claudinho to sign a pre-contract, but the Brazilian had an agreement with his old club Red Bull Bragantino not to do that.
“I had offers from AS Roma and Ajax last summer,” Claudinho reveals in conversation with the Russian sports.ru. “Ajax was the most concrete, but we had a conversation when the transfer market was still closed. They wanted me to sign a pre-contract, but I had an agreement with Red Bull Bragantino.” Claudinho was included in the Brazilian Olympic selection that summer, as was Ajax player Antony, whose teammate he would not become.
During the Olympics (where the Brazilians took home the gold medal), Zenit knocked on the door, who was very determined to bring in the midfielder. “They were very resolute, and all other options were gone. Of course I was drawn to the fact that there were already other Brazilians at Zenit, like Malcolm, who I’ve known since I was eight. He was constantly talking to me about the club, which probably inquired about me with him. Overall, Malcolm played an important role in the transfer.”
Claudinho thinks Antony could have played a similar role, although the Ajax winger was not aware of the talks with Ajax during the Olympics, according to the Zenit revelation. Since his arrival to Russia, Claudinho has scored no fewer than seven goals in twelve competition matches; in the Champions League he made two in six games. His contract with the current leader of the Russian Premier League runs until mid-2026.
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